Introduction to the University of Florida’s SearchAR Project
The University of Florida (UF) was awarded $1.39M in April 2021 for the Public Safety Innovation Accelerator Program: Augmented Reality (AR) cooperative agreement. This project goals to enhance emergency Search and Rescue (SAR) operations using AR technology. AR has shown great potential in supporting SAR missions by enhancing wayfinding, situation awareness, and team communications. However, there are technical and behavioral challenges that have to be addressed to completely adopt AR in SAR tasks.
The Goal of the SearchAR Project
The SearchAR project seeks to design, prototype, and test a cognition-driven, context-dependent, and personalized AR user interface and interaction method to support key functions in emergency SAR. The project will utilize a user-centered user experience engineering (UX) process to handle human-computer interaction and usefulness challenges. The goal is to strike a balance between attention allocation and cognitive load, ensuring that first responders can effectively use AR technology in emergency situations.
Meet the Team Behind SearchAR
The project team consists of experienced professionals in the sector of engineering and emergency response. The team includes:
- Principal Investigator Eric Jing Du, an Associate Professor with the Department of Civil Engineering, and Industrial and System Engineering on the University of Florida.
- Co-PI Joseph Gabbard, an Associate Professor with the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering on the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, VA.
- Co-PI Jason Moats, the Director of the Innovation and Test Division at Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX).
Project Overview
The SearchAR project will begin by examining the overall design principles of AR user interfaces and interactions. The project will even investigate easy methods to adapt these designs to the various cognitive status and changing environments of SAR missions. The team will collect field data from TEEX Disaster City and use real-time cognitive function prediction and machine learning methods to tell their design decisions. The project objectives include:
- Developing AR user interface and interaction techniques for SAR
- Creating adaptive AR designs for personalized usability and cognitive needs
- Investigating and validating AR usability in realistic team-based SAR scenarios
Partnerships and Implementation
The University of Florida is partnering with public safety organizations, including local, state, and federal SAR teams, to develop and implement scalable and relevant AR technology. The project will even extend to other stakeholder groups, reminiscent of the International Rescue and Emergency Care Association (IRECA), the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP). This will help discover ways to expand the implementation of SearchAR into other emergency and disaster response operations.
Potential Impacts of the Project
The SearchAR project has the potential to make significant contributions to the sector of emergency response. The project’s outcomes may include:
- Transferable AR user interface and interaction design principles for SAR and other emergency tasks
- Cognition-driven methods to balance attention and cognitive load in SAR
- Field data to guide the adoption of multiuser AR in team-based SAR
Conclusion
The SearchAR project is an revolutionary initiative that goals to enhance emergency Search and Rescue operations using Augmented Reality technology. With a user-centered approach and partnerships with public safety organizations, the project has the potential to make a big impact on the sector of emergency response. The project’s outcomes may result in improved wayfinding, situation awareness, and team communications, ultimately saving lives in emergency situations.
